Baggers
The parents of Rigo De la Torre, owner of this 2007 Harley-Davidson Road King, came to America from Mexico and decided to settle in the state of the all-American motorcycle, Wisconsin. They became American citizens, worked hard, and started making their contributions to America. Several years later, Rigo was born and like many other children of naturalized citizens, his parents ensured that he knew of his Mexican heritage and culture. They also made sure that he adapted and learned the American way of life. Well, at least some of them. As we all know, there are many things here in America that nobody would ever want their children to experience. There were a few things during Rigo’s upbringing that Mom and Dad didn’t have to teach him about. Since he was born and raised in Milwaukee, Harley- Davidson motorcycles consumed him at an early age. “When I was about four- years-old, I can clearly remember hearing the rumbling sound of the Harleys. I always got excited when I heard one coming down the road, and it was easy to distinguish the sound of a Harley from all the other brands of motorcycles,” said Rigo. His early infatuation with Harley-Davidsons is a common feeling shared by many youngsters all around the world, not just here in America.
After spending several years developing his motorcycle riding skills on a few lightweight machines, he decided to leap into the heavyweight motorcycle class and bought himself a Road King. He wanted a bike to reflect his Mexican heritage and culture, but H-D did not produce any factory-built machines to his particular likings, so his new scooter would have to go through a major transformation.
He changed his stock handlebars for a set of Bob Shop Customs grabbers that stretches almost half-way back to the center of the bike, and the factory seat was ditched for one made of real ostrich and a baby alligator that matches his riding boots. Rigo added lots of other custom motorcycle parts, but none of the parts gave off a clear Mexican theme. He knew the best way to make anybody who eyeballed his bike say, “Hey, that bike has some Mexican culture,” was to get the right paint scheme.
Rigo needed a bike painter, but not your normal custom motorcycle artist. He needed his bike painted by someone who understood Mexican culture. He also knew that it would be much easier to explain his paint and design scheme to someone of Mexican heritage and Hispanic background. The search was on!
It took almost a month of intense searching and a painter with a Mexican background and native born in Milwaukee was finally found, but he had never painted a motorcycle. Julian Correa, an urban artist who portrays his representations of the world through the use of literal and abstract icons, started his painting career as a graffiti artist. “I’m always looking to expand my talent and experience, and I knew that Rigo’s request would be challenging, but I felt very positive and proud to take on such a project,” said Julian. Rigo wanted an appealing combination of colors and designs to reflect the ancient Aztec culture. The graphics had to include an Aztec calendar, Aztec Gods, a Mexican eagle, and a jaguar. This was one of those custom motorcycle projects that had to be done right the first time. Julian poured all of his time and effort into custom painting Rigo’s bike, and the end results were astonishing. “It’s beautiful! Only an artist with a Mexican background could have done such a paint job,” said Rigo.
It’s extremely important for those from foreign lands to share their culture with the American people. As you know, America is a very young country, so there are many countries around the world that were making history long before America was ever discovered. Another good reason why it’s important is because according to recent data released by the US State department most Americans will never travel to a foreign country. Only about 37-percent of Americans have a passport, which means that two out of three Americans can’t even fly to Canada.
Rigo, thanks for sharing your Mexican heritage through motorcycling. We’ll see you on the road!
Up Close: Rigo’s iPod Stereo System
Not so long ago, a stereo system on a motorcycle was somewhat unusual. Riders enjoyed the sounds of the exhaust while riding and then enjoyed the music once reaching their destination. Today, it’s rare to find a biker without some sort of stereo system permanently or temporarily mounted on their bike or some way of listening to tunes jury-rigged in their headgear. Technology has pushed many old style bikers into a new era. It seems as if The Motor Company has just a many stereo system options as it does motorcycle models.
Many of Harley’s current models are produced with stereo systems, but Rigo’s Road King is one of the touring models that doesn’t have a factory-installed stereo. Not a problem when you’ve got friends in the business like Jesse’s Hawg Pen in Milwaukee that specializes in modern motorcycle sound equipment and technology. Rigo wanted a stereo system that did not interfere with his paint design or change his overall appearance of his bike. He normally listens to his music on his 80GB iPod, so Jesse recommended installing a stereo system utilizing an iPod. Jesse cut and modified the dash between the gas tanks and installed the iPod and then added a removable waterproof cover. The design is barely noticeable. Then he gutted two sets of passing lamps and installed a set of Alpine 4” speakers in the smaller set and a set of 6.5” speakers in the larger ones. He then installed two 6 x 9 Alpine speakers in each saddlebag. The left saddlebag also contains an Alpine PDX 4.150 4-channel 600-watt AMP. The end result “performs great” according to Rigo. Maybe now we’ll have to change that old motorcycle saying to “Loud music saves lives!”
If music’s missing from your ride, Jesse’s Hawg Pen can be reached at 414-342-4294.
Builder: Rigo De la Torre
There are many positive reasons why bike owners have their machines customized by builders like Paul Yaffe, Vince Doll, Fred Kodlin, Pat Briggs, and the long list of many other famous custom builders. Most of these builders offer their own line of custom parts, and their respective and unique styles and designs are easily recognizable. The quality of their work is usually very good, and the bike owner can normally get their bike customized to their particular desires. One of the easiest ways to give your stock bike that custom appearance is to drop it off at the builder of your choice with instructions on what you want customized, and pick it up a few weeks or months later, and shazam ― you’ve got yourself a custom motorcycle. This motorcycle publication, along with quite a few others, features many motorcycles that were customized by a well-known builder.
That is all well and good, and my hat is off to those who have their bikes customized by some big-name builder. But, it sure is a real pleasure when I run across a rider who turned his machine into a special custom with his own hands, and his own ideas, and maybe a little help from his not-so-famous friends. That’s exactly what Rigo De la Torre did to his Road King. This was his first Harley, and he really didn’t want to take the chance of a builder doing something to his bike that was not exactly the way he wanted. “I did all of the custom work on my bike, or either personally helped my friends do some of it with my close involvement,” said Rigo. Guess who’s got the bug now as Rigo is already thinking about how he is going to customize his next Harley. If I have my way, you’ll see it first in Barnett’s Magazine.
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